I'm always intruiged when people feel they must be shorter that their OH. My DH and I are pretty much the same height - and then he slouches. I still wore heels

I am a LOT taller than the Good Ethnic Boy - he can face plant in my cleavage without bending down (and did, in one of our wedding photos! ). I didn't wear heels, but that was at least partly because I can only balance in really high ones - think 6" - and that would've been kinda silly.

Mine was a story of impulse. I bought it off-the-rack before I was even technically engaged (though I knew the ring was coming). It was $600. A few months later, my mom found another dress that she thought was perfect for me and I LOVED it. She encouraged me to just replace the dress (the second dress was $700 new), but the second dress wasn't perfect either.

I loved almost everything about my dress: the beading, the long train, the elegant back. The other dress had similar beading, but no train and the back was plain, BUT it had a gorgeous colour trip band and the lace up (corset back) was a different colour than the dress (could be ordered in 55 colours). It was the color that I loved (like my mom had known I would).

After agonizing about it, I came up with the idea of getting the pink trim added to my dress and replacing the lace-up with a pink one. I found a seamstress who could do it and make the other alterations the dress needed and the total was $330 in alterations, so for less than $950 I got a dress that was absolutely perfect for me.

I completely lucked out. I hate shopping with a passion and didn't subject my friends to go shopping with me and my mood. I found my dream dress in a dark gorgeous blue that suited me to a tee, but found out that they could order in a cream that looked sublime - that was almost 10 years ago and just found out that it is now considered a classic. A-line of 3 tiers of cream silk with crystal beading at the edges and a gorgeous jacket.

It's not a "weddingy" wedding dress. It's actually more a MOB dress, but I've been able to wear it at least 3 times a year since then! Very proud of that! It was only $500, and as soon as my Mom saw it, she said she just had to buy if for me. I had already ordered and paid for it, but she happened to be in town when it arrived and was the first to see it.

I love how there are so many different styles, colors, etc for every personality, preference, and body these days! I'm getting married in September, and my gown is pretty traditional. Ok, wicked princess-style traditional, with ballgown skirt, sweetheart neckline, chapel train, and cathedral-length veil and fingertip blusher.

I really only get weird looks when I mention that 1. It's NOT strapless (I cannot physically hold up anything strapless and do not want to risk a wardrobe malfunction mid-ceremony.) It's off the shoulder, similar to Belle's yellow dress in Disney's Beauty and the Beast and 2. It's ivory. I'm a blonde Irish-Polish girl, and I'm either as white as a sheet myself or red as a lobster if I think about sunshine. There's no in-between.

Because we're getting married at the end of September and New England weather can go either way, my mother is making a light, faux fur trimmed velvet cape in case of chilly temps. My shoes are on loan from my grandmother - they were her wedding shoes 64 years ago! Not counting specialty undergarments, the whole thing is costing around $1200 with tailoring, jewelry, and the fabric for the cape. Other than the reception itself, that's the biggest chunk of change we're dropping on anything. My fiancee doesn't get to see it until I show up on that aisle!

I remember getting my wedding dress with my Mum, she wanted me to get something white with lots of beads and lace, but I wanted something similar and more classic. I tried on one dress like that, and it wasn't happy with it. In the end, got a ivory backless mermaid dress for under $500 and the veil cost almost as much as the dress!

I really don't like the ubiquitousness of strapless dresses though, it meant that some shops were simply not options for me at all, as they had little but strapless.

I really only get weird looks when I mention that 1. It's NOT strapless (I cannot physically hold up anything strapless and do not want to risk a wardrobe malfunction mid-ceremony.) It's off the shoulder, similar to Belle's yellow dress in Disney's Beauty and the Beast and 2. It's ivory. I'm a blonde Irish-Polish girl, and I'm either as white as a sheet myself or red as a lobster if I think about sunshine. There's no in-between.

I'm really surprised by that. Strapless has been on the way out for a couple of years now, and ivory has always been a common 'white' alternative. My dress was ivory. In fact, MOST people I know wore ivory. White-white suits very few people.

I really only get weird looks when I mention that 1. It's NOT strapless (I cannot physically hold up anything strapless and do not want to risk a wardrobe malfunction mid-ceremony.) It's off the shoulder, similar to Belle's yellow dress in Disney's Beauty and the Beast and 2. It's ivory. I'm a blonde Irish-Polish girl, and I'm either as white as a sheet myself or red as a lobster if I think about sunshine. There's no in-between.

I'm really surprised by that. Strapless has been on the way out for a couple of years now, and ivory has always been a common 'white' alternative. My dress was ivory. In fact, MOST people I know wore ivory. White-white suits very few people.

Yep - mine above is ivory. I actually ended up getting ivory because I thought it looked richer next to the burgundy bridesmaid dresses.

I really only get weird looks when I mention that 1. It's NOT strapless (I cannot physically hold up anything strapless and do not want to risk a wardrobe malfunction mid-ceremony.) It's off the shoulder, similar to Belle's yellow dress in Disney's Beauty and the Beast and 2. It's ivory. I'm a blonde Irish-Polish girl, and I'm either as white as a sheet myself or red as a lobster if I think about sunshine. There's no in-between.

I'm really surprised by that. Strapless has been on the way out for a couple of years now, and ivory has always been a common 'white' alternative. My dress was ivory. In fact, MOST people I know wore ivory. White-white suits very few people.

Strapless was definitely NOT on the way out when I was shopping for mine (fall 2012 for 2013 wedding). If I was lucky I could find things that were not spaghetti straps, but sleeves were impossible. I was lucky to find a dress with a nice halter top, and another with wide shoulder straps.

Getting ivory instead of bright white was thankfully quite easy, however - I looked dead in white, but ivory was much better!

Logged

What part of v_e = \sqrt{\frac{2GM}{r}} don't you understand? It's only rocket science!

"The problem with re-examining your brilliant ideas is that more often than not, you discover they are the intellectual equivalent of saying, 'Hold my beer and watch this!'" - Cindy Couture

I really only get weird looks when I mention that 1. It's NOT strapless (I cannot physically hold up anything strapless and do not want to risk a wardrobe malfunction mid-ceremony.) It's off the shoulder, similar to Belle's yellow dress in Disney's Beauty and the Beast and 2. It's ivory. I'm a blonde Irish-Polish girl, and I'm either as white as a sheet myself or red as a lobster if I think about sunshine. There's no in-between.

I'm really surprised by that. Strapless has been on the way out for a couple of years now, and ivory has always been a common 'white' alternative. My dress was ivory. In fact, MOST people I know wore ivory. White-white suits very few people.

Strapless was definitely NOT on the way out when I was shopping for mine (fall 2012 for 2013 wedding). If I was lucky I could find things that were not spaghetti straps, but sleeves were impossible. I was lucky to find a dress with a nice halter top, and another with wide shoulder straps.

Getting ivory instead of bright white was thankfully quite easy, however - I looked dead in white, but ivory was much better!

Sleeves, not coming in so much, but straps are. Most celebrity weddings over the past 2 years have had dresses with straps. Thats usually a good indicia of trend.

I quite like the sort of 'ivory' that translates as 'cream'. Pale ivory, if you will. My problem (and the Good Ethnic Boy's) was that the shade being called 'ivory' here in Australia in 2009 was a horrific (to us at least) dark yellowy ivory, almost a tea-stained sort of colour. As he put it, "they look like they've been hanging in an op-shop window for about ten years".

If people like that colour and look good in it, awesome! More power to you! I would love to see pictures of you in your dress! But dear gods, when it looks horrible on you and you know it and it's the only option apart from pure virginal white (which also looks pretty bad on you, it's why I wanted some red on my dress) in all but one of the stores you visit, it gets old fast.